Dutch government nominates foreign minister Wopke Hoekstra as EU Commissioner

sjmulder , 10 months ago (edited 10 months ago)

Please no, Timmermans had his heart into it and got a lot done, Hoekstra however is a Shell alumnus and he nor his party has ever shown any serious concern for the climate catastrophe we’re in.

qaz , 10 months ago

I didn’t know he worked at Shell, that should immediately disqualify him.

autotldr Bot , 10 months ago

This is the best summary I could come up with:

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He gained a reputation in Brussels as one of the most vocal critics of shared fiscal burden, rallying a group of so-called “frugal” countries to oppose issuing collective debt in the form of “corona bonds”.

Timmermans formally resigned from the Commission earlier this week and his replacement is expected to take the baton on the EU’s climate policy, although Commission President Ursula von der Leyen could decide to allocate the climate portfolio to another Commissioner.

A European Commission spokesperson said Friday that Hoekstra will be interviewed by von der Leyen on Tuesday, August 29.

Earlier this week, it was confirmed that socialist Maroš Šefčovič, who has been dealing with relations with the UK and setting up a joint gas buying platform among others, would take on Timmermans’ previous responsibilities as European Commission Vice-President for the Green Deal, but the climate portfolio remains up for grabs.

In response to the nomination, the group of the Socialists & Democrats (S&D) in the European Parliament confirmed their claim to the climate portfolio Friday, describing Hoekstra as a “controversial” candidate.

“Against the backdrop of the conservative EPP’s recent cynical and populist manoeuvres to water down the Green Deal and derail key legislative files such as the nature restoration law, it is crucial for our Group that the climate portfolio remains in the hands of the Socialists and Democrats family," the S&D Group said in a statement.

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The original article contains 447 words, the summary contains 230 words. Saved 49%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!